Response of Strength, Power and Muscle Endurance to Resistance Training with Different Rest Intervals

Researchers and coaches are constantly looking for the most effective ways to enhance athletic performance. The aim of this study was to investigate the response of strength, power and muscle endurance to resistance training with different rest intervals. 16 male volunteers were selected and divided randomly into two groups. Group A (n=8, age 22±2.55 yr, height 174.20±6.14 cm, weight 64.20±6.33 kg) performed resistance training with constant rest intervals (120 sec.) and group B (n=8, age 22±3.54 yr, height 176.40±6.50 cm, weight 64.60±6.38 kg) with incremental rest intervals (90, 120, 150 sec.) 3 days per week for 6 weeks. To determine strength, power and muscle endurance, 1RM, bench press, throwing medicine ball and maximum repetition of bench press with 30% of 1RM tests were used respectively. Blood samples were collected 3 minutes before and 2 minutes after the 17th session to measure blood lactate. Paired samples and independent samples t tests were used for data analysis (α<0.05). Results showed that strength, power and muscle endurance significantly increased in both groups (P<0.05), but group B showed a greater percentage change in all tests. Blood lactate significantly increased after the resistance training compared with the rest interval but this increase was less in group B. It can be concluded that resistance training with progressive rest intervals is more important for increasing strength, power and muscle endurance compared with constant rest intervals.